The Art of Love
by PM Anders
Summary: Mick is not the only vampire dealing with a past love, Josef must confront his own history when Beth's cousin comes to town for a case of stolen paintings. MickBeth JosefOC are the pairings.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from the show Moonlight. I only claim ownership my own character and her history.

Chapter One

Beth was blowdrying her hair when she heard the knocking coming from her apartment door. She went to put the dryer down but found herself in a pickle when her round hairbrush got caught in her curls. She groaned and tried to untangle the knots as the knocks on her door continued. Fustrated, Beth walked briskly to her door and shoved her eyeball against the peephole. An even bigger groan erupted when she saw Mick standing outside and here she was with her hair in a big mess while at war with a pesky brush.

She contemplated ignoring him for the moment but, hey, he's seen her in worse condition. Beth sucked in her breath, feigned a smile, and opened the door. She casually pretended to ignore that she was holding her arm up, shoving the brush deeper into her mass of blond. Mick raised an eyebrow and Beth knew she'd been busted but the enigmatic man said nothing to embarass her. Things had been tumultuous since Beth had tried to kill Coraline, to say the least. The latter woman currently laid in an icy coma in a freezer at Josef's house. Mick had turned her to save her life but left the stake in to keep her paralyzed. She'd proven to be both too dangerous and creepy to allow to walk around. However, she'd somehow discovered a "cure" for vampirism. This gave Coraline a small bit of worth that was responsible for her still being alive. Beth remembered watching in both horror and fascination as Mick turned Coraline back into a vampire and had run out of the place in revulsion. Beth refused to answer calls from Mick and definitely didn't want to come face to face with him. But there he stood, at her door staring at Beth in all her awkward under-dressed glory with a hair brush tangled in her head.

"Beth." He said her name like he was saying it for the first time "Can I come in?"

Beth sighed and stepped aside, holding the door open for Mick "Sure. But we'll be getting company shortly."

Mick looked around Beth's humble apartment, her table littered with photos, papers, and her laptop casually left open with Buzzwire's website up and running "Who's coming?"

"My cousin Eva. She's driving in from Phoenix and will probably be here within an hour." Beth stated as she moved towards her bathroom and began working at her hair issue "She's coming into town to help out with that stolen art case and I'm hoping to get an inside track for a story."

Mick leaned against the wall near the bathroom door but didn't dare look in "Oh? What does Eva do?"

"She's an assistant curator at the Phoenix Museum of Art. I guess the museum doesn't think the stolen art is that important."

"And you do?" Mick asked as he stood and ,unknowingly to Beth, inhaled the perfumes that radiated from her bathroom and closed his eyes for a moment.

Beth made a yowching sound and frowned when her brush broke free from her hair but claimed a clump "Yes, I do. There has to be a reason why someone would break into a huge Bellaire mansion,complete with guard dogs, and make off with a bunch of paintings."

"Boredom? Bad taste in art?" Mick jested but stifled himself when Beth popped her head out and glared with icy eyes.

"Ha ha. But whatever it is, I'm going to be there for the inside scoop."

Beth made her way from bathroom to bedroom nary looking at the handsome man standing in her apartment watching her with intense eyes. Mick had been angry with Beth, very angry, but he still thought about her nonstop. She drove him insane. All Mick wanted was to be near Beth despite every node of his common sense telling him to back off. He was no good for her. She deserved a normal life with a nice, normal, _human_ man at her side. Be as it may, Beth seemed to want anything but a normal life, she kept herself in close contact with Mick. Much to his chagrin. Mick sniffed the air as he imagined Beth slipping into clothes not of the appropriate daytime variety.

"So are you and Eva close?"

Beth talked loudly from the bedroom as if she'd forgotten that Mick had hearing like a bat "We were when we were kids and in college."

"Is she anything like you?"

A laugh from the bedroom "Not really. I mean we have the same hair and eye color but that's about it. She's very...earthy."

Mick grinned "A hippy?"

"Not quite a hippy. She's just different from me. You'll see."

Beth emerged from the bedroom wearing jeans, a pale pink sweater, and her hair pulled into a ponytail. Mick drank her in. She looked comfortable, simple, lovely. Where Coraline had been a snow-white tigress, Beth was a tabby kitten. Both women were beautiful but in extremely different ways. Coraline was all pale angles and sultry glances and Beth was straighforward and wide-eyed. One was a doe and the other a wolf. Both were definitely obsessived and compulsive.

Beth put a hand on one hip and frowned at Mick "what?"

Mick snapped out of his trance "Nothing really, you just look...nice."

"You're not going to get all sappy on me, are you?"

Mick chuckled "Never." but his beautiful eyes told a different story. One he feared would play out until he heard the obnoxious sound a car horn playing the Mexican Hat Dance theme. In nanoseconds, he was at Beth's window and watched as some sort of convertible pulled up infront of the building. The car looked positively ancient. A woman looked up as she got out of the car. She waved. Micked waved back bovinely, in shock, that she waved at him first.

Beth joined Mick at the window and waved happily at her cousin.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Beth ran over to her door and let her cousin in. Mick watched a blond woman entered and smiled as she hugged Beth warmly. They were about the same height, had the same hair and eye color as Beth stated but that was where their similarities ended. Beth was prettier, though that was unfair because she tended to be prettier than a lot of other women. Eva's face was longer, her nose straight rather than pert and whether it was a small overbite or simply just her mouth formation, her upper lip jutted out just a bit further than her bottom. Beth's hair was curly but Eva's was wavy and slightly shaggy and it hung just past her shoulders. Eva had a light sprinkling of freckles across her cheekbones and nose and she wore no makeup. Eva was not ugly but she probably didn't turn many heads as she walked down the streets either. At least, not until she smiled and laughed. She could light up and entire room with her presence.

Eva walked over to Mick, appraising the tall man and, to his surprise, gave him a hug. She stood back and smiled at Mick "So this is handsome devil that saved my bratty cousin." Eva's voice was lower than Beth's and husky. Not the voice you expected from a petite blond.

Mick raised an eyebrow at Beth who shrugged "She knows everything."

"Everything?" Mick asked cautiously.

Eva smirked "Everything. Including..." and Eva made a bat gesture and laughed at Mick's expression "No worries, we have your sort in Arizona too." She tossed her knapsack down onto Beth's couch and looked around "This is cute. Not what I expected from a famous investigative reporter but it doesn't suck."

Beth laughed "I'm not that famous and I tend to think it's cozy." Both women looked at Mick.

"I like your apartment." was all he could muster in Beth's direction and he watched Eva circle the room as if he was checking a car for safety and reliability. Earthy was a the right term. Eva looked like she played around on a cattle ranch or spent her days taking photos in the Arizona desert. Jeans, boots, a bright green tunic shirt with billowing sleeves, turquoise jewelry, and loose unkempt hair definitely screamed bohemian rather than hippy. Though, Mick wouldn't have been surprised if she kept granola and tofu in her lunch box.

"So Beth tells me that you've been sent by a museum to help with this big painting heist." Mick asked Eva.

"Yeah. I guess but I don't honestly know if I'll be much help. I'm a mere flunky."

Beth stepped in "Eva _has_ a good eye for the authentic." She looked thoughtfully at the other woman "When are you supposed to meet with the detectives."

Eva sighed "I have no clue. They're supposed to call my cell when I'm required."

Mick stood up straight and tucked his hands into his pants-pockets "Well, if you have some free time, I'm heading on over to Josef's place. You should come because he has some art that he's been thinking about having appraised."

"That's a good idea." Beth stated and she quickly put on her black leather jacket "It's right up your alley, Eva. Besides, you _have_ to see Josef's house. It's amazing."

Mick smiled at the cute excitement coming from Beth. She was always easily amused by the silliest things. It's what made her so good at her job, her enthusiasm, her zest for life. Perhaps that was what truly attracted Mick to her. Beth loved life, reveled in mystery and danger and all that goes with it.

The three exited the apartment building and took Mick's car to Josef's house. Eva's eyes widened in plebeian appreciation when she saw the huge modern structure come into view.

"Phew! Hello Moneybags." She whistled through her teeth "Is Daddy Warbucks a vampire too?"

Mick was still caught off guard by how casual Eva was being with the whole vampire thing but he appreciated that she didn't, either, run screaming or try to stab him with a wooden stake "Yes. Josef is a vampire. A fairly old one at that. But he's a decent guy somewhere beneath his steely exterior."

"So...he's an asshole?"

Mick chuckled "No. He's just aloof, paranoid, and slightly sociopathic. It comes with centuries of living. It's not his fault really." He paused as if in thought "But he is good guy. He's done alot for me over the years."

Eva nodded her head "ah, I see." She looked at Beth and winked. She then motioned in a mocking way of whether or not Beth did the smoochings with the hottie vampire. Beth blushed, smiled, and whispered "no". This was not entirely true for Beth had kissed Mick a couple of times, but the fact that she supposedly had a boyfriend tended to dampen the mood.

Mick brought the car to a stop and they walked to the front door and were greeted by a man dressed in a dark suit. They were escorted into a living room where a tall, handsome and strikingly young man was waiting for them. He was sitting on a leather sofa with a brandy snifter in his hand. There was a devilish twinkle in his eyes and his smile was full of wicked charm.

"Mick. What a pleasure. And you brought some lovely company." He stood up and walked...no stalked toward the girls, his intense eyes unblinking. "Beth, you look radiant as always and your friend..." His voice trailed off when he looked at Eva. His expression turned from charming to something else. Something mixed of confusion, disbelief, and what could only be described as love?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Eva backed up a bit when Josef's gaze locked on her and she shifted her eyes towards Mick, afraid to move a muscle "Mick, why is he staring at me?"

But Josef answered her instead "I'm not staring, I'm admiring."

"Well, please stop. It's creeping me out." Eva stated still not moving a muscle.

Fortunately, Josef snapped out of his seeming trance and stood up straight "Hem'...now what brings you three to my humble abode?"

Mick finally stepped forward towards Josef "I needed to talk to you about future arrangements for..." he looked at Beth than back to his friend "you-know-who."

Beth rolled her eyes "I know who you're talking about, Mick. No need to try and use some sort of stupid code." Mick was busted by her words and he sheepishly ran a hand through his hair. His code wasn't too subtle and rather shameless. He should have known better than to think he could actually fool Beth. He looked back at her gorgeous face, seeing her eyes burning with hurt. He didn't like seeing her upset. He didn't like _making_ her upset.

"And I thought Eva could look at some of your artwork. Save you a penny or three." Mick used the old change-the-subject dodge.

"aw, Mick. You shouldn't have." Josef jested and looked back at Eva "Are you an artist?"

Eva blushed "No. I'm most certainly not. I simply look at art and tell you if it's worth anything. And if it's got a good story behind it, I might be able to share."

"Excellent." Josef started giving her that _hungry-lion-hunting-a-gazelle_ look again "It just so happens that I have some great art..." he motioned with a sweeping gesture of his arm "right this way."

The two of them walked into a room leaving Mick and Beth alone. Mick saw that Beth was still hurt and he walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder "I...I'm sorry."

Beth looked up at Mick "For what? Being you?"

"What does that mean?"

"You try to be so enigmatic all the time. It gets old but it's what you do." Beth looked down, biting her lower lip.

Mick put his other hand on her other shoulder, steadying his embrace "Beth. I just don't want you to get hurt anymore. Especially not by Coraline. She's done enough already."

"So you think that if you don't say her name it somehow protects me? It doesn't work that way, Mick. I'm a big girl. I can handle myself." Beth raised her eyes back up at the handsome vampire, wishing that he would just shut up and kiss her. She wanted that all the time, every time she laid eyes on him or heard his voice. Instead, she just got more words.

"No Beth. There are some things you can't handle by yourself."

Beth raised an elegant eyebrow "Like you?"

Mick dropped his hands and quickly moved away from her "Like me."

Beth was about to say something but instead she put her hands on her hips, looked down at her feet, and shook her head. She really wanted to lay into him this time about his tired broody-pants evil vampire routine but her thoughts were interrupted by a cry from Eva from the next room. Both Mick and Beth ran into the art room where Eva was standing in front of a large painting and Josef was hovering her with a slightly insane, lustful look.

"Mick." Eva stammered "He's doing it again. That creepy thing." She backed up slowly but Josef moved in closer, keeping near her...staring "Back off, Nosferatu!" Eva snapped.

Mick went to the duo and grabbed Eva by the arm, keeping his eyes on Josef "Listen, man. I'll be back later. I'm going to get the ladies out of here before you do something nuts. Okay?"

Josef snapped from his trance again "I'm sorry. I don't know what's gotten into me." He put his fingers to his temples and rubbed. "Yeah. Sure. I'll be here. Come by whenever." He smiled normally and escorted Mick, Beth, and Eva out to the car.

On the drive back to Beth's apartment, Eva sat in the backseat unnerved by her encounter with Josef "What's your friend's damage?"

Mick looked at Eva through his rear-view mirror "I'm not sure but I'll find out."

Later that evening, Mick and Josef sat in the living room with glasses of fresh blood. Josef looked like he was put through the ringer. His hair was all mussed and his shirt was disheveled. Mick rarely saw Josef in such a state. It was usually the reverse situation with Mick being the mess and needing Josef to straighten him out with his cold pragmatism and common sense.

"So. Are you going to tell me about Eva or are we going to gaze at each other all night?" Mick asked and took a sip of the blood.

Josef sighed, rubbed his forehead, and gulped down his entire glass "You know how I've always claimed that I've never been in love, never could be in love, and would never fall in love?"

"Yeah."

"I lied." He slouched on the leather couch and looked at Mick "It was in 1871 and I had gone to Russia to play around with the nobility."

"Always fun." Said Mick.

"It seriously was" Josef replied "Anyway, we were all ice-skating..."

"You were ice-skating?"

"It's a very underrated past-time...wait...what? Do you want to hear my story or what?" Josef's tone was clearly annoyed.

Mick smirked "Sorry. Continue." He took another sip of blood.

"We were ice-skating at night. Under a huge winter moon and that's when I saw her." Josef sighed "The most lovely creature I had ever laid eyes on. She was wearing one of those tight, corset, bodice things with lace on her.." He made gestures over his chest "and black fur. Lots of black fur that made her pale blond hair really stand out. She smiled at me and that's when I knew I was a smitten kitten."

Josef sat up and continued with a look in his eyes that suggested he was deep into memory "Her name was Svetlana and she was the daughter of a local magistrate. Not real nobility but they had enough money and charisma to be invited out with the in-crowd. After that night, we barely left the bedroom. Hers, of course, with me sneaking in. Those were rather prudish days." Josef looked at Mick with intensity that unsettled his best friend. "I wanted her then. With me for always."

"Did you turn her?"

Josef's expression grew sad "No. I didn't have a chance to. I had to leave for two months on other business. I promised her I would return but her father had married her off to some stuffy old man. She died of consumption two years later."

Mick was now confused "So. This has to do with Eva, how?"

Josef stood up and poured himself another glass of blood "Eva looks just like Svetlana."

Mick's eyes widened a bit "In light of my whole Coraline dilemma, you aren't suggesting that Eva _is_ Svetlana?"

Josef shrugged "It's possible."

Mick shook his head "No. No it's not, Josef. Eva couldn't be Svetlana like how Coraline was Morgan. Svetlana was never changed and she died a human death."

"So I was told. What if she wasn't?"

Mick knew that this was wishful thinking "Eva is completely human, Josef. She grew up with Beth. They were practically raised together or something."

"The how else do you explain the serious similarity, Mick?"

Mick leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees in a thinking gesture "I don't know but I'll figure it out." He looked at his out-of-character friend and shook his head "You just keep yourself from doing something you might actually regret."

At that, Josef laughed and drank his glass of blood.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Beth and Eva were sitting on the patio at a restaurant called Chartreuse Cafe eating lunch. Beth was slowly picking at a piece of grilled tuna while Eva shoveled a turkey club into her mouth, eyeing her cousin who clearly had something on her mind.

"Thinking about someone tall, gorgeous, and immortal?" She asked.

Beth sighed "Always. He's about the only real thing that inhabits my brain these days."

"When was the last time you talked to Josh?"

"Last week. He's still in the semi-angry stage right now." Beth pushed her plate off to the side and sipped her diet cola. "I don't know how I managed to screw things up so much."

Eva shrugged "Perhaps you and Josh weren't meant to be and clearly you have a serious admirer in Mick."

Beth crossed her arms "True, but even he seems to not want to be around me unless it's business." She pulled out her cell-phone and looked to see if anyone left a message. No one had and she frowned "I just don't get it."

Eva took another large bite "men." She felt the vibration of her cell phone and saw that it was from the local FBI offices "Bah. Duty calls, babe." she laughed and stood up. Eva stood up and leaned over to plant a kiss on Beth's cheek "I'll call you when I'm done."

"Have fun." Beth mustered a smiled and watched her cousin dropped cash on the table, wave, and walk off to go play with the feds. In her hand, her phone buzzed and Beth saw that it was Mick. She answered "Hey Mick."

"Hi there. Listen, can you come over to my place?" At his words, Beth's heart jumped as the images of a sexy afternoon tryst popped into her mind "I need help with research." and those subsequent words killed the mood.

Beth rolled her eyes but managed an enthusiastic tone "Sure. I'll be there in about fifteen minutes." She guessed even work time was quality time. She paid and headed over to Mick's.

Mick opened the door and smiled at Beth. She smiled back but her eyes didn't. Mick knew this was, partially, because of yesterday's conversation. He wish he knew how to not continously hurt her feelings. She walked into his apartment and noted that his laptop was all set up for some searching. She set her purse down on the table and removed her jacket, then rubbed her neck. Mick stared at this motion, inhaling her perfume, and sensing the rush of blood through her body. In an almost cruel fashion, Beth nonchalantly stretched her arms up. She worked out all her kinks with no care as to how hard it was for Mick to keep his composure.

Beth sat down in the chair infront of Mick's computer "So what's on the menu today?"

Mick wanted to answer that _she_ was on the menu but he replied "It's about your cousin."

Beth dropped her hands from the mouse and keyboard as her jaw hit the floor "Eva? Why?"

"Because Josef is obsessed and he's convinced that she's some sort of past love returned to him."

"Like Coraline" Beth breathed in slight aggravation.

"Unfortunately. We need to find out all we can about Eva and prove to Josef that's she not this Svetlana chick from back in the nineteenth century."

"Why don't we just ask Eva? Though, I can assure you that she's not in any way like Coraline." Beth stated very sternly.

"I trust that that is true, Beth, but we need tangible proof." Mick leaned down over Beth's shoulder with his arms on either side of her. His lips hovering near her ears and neck. Beth gave a small shudder when she felt his warm breathe on her. "Please, Beth. You have no idea how dangerous Josef can be."

"You think he'd kill her?"

"Worse. He'd turn her and keep her his little prisoner. He told me that this woman was the one love of his life and that he lost her once already. I assume he won't want to lose her again without a fight."

Beth turned her face toward his, their lips mere inches from one another "If it means saving her life." Her eyes started to shut as she wanted to kiss Mick and she saw him reacting accordingly. She shifted her face back to the computer screen but Mick kept his face right by hers, unflinching.

Mick inhaled Beth's scent deeply. Tuberose and her arousel filled his olfactory system and resisted every impulse to snatch Beth up and have his way with her. He watched as her fingers surfed the internet for public records on Eva but he had a feeling that they would have to go to the hall of records for some hands-on research.

Unbeknownst to both Beth and Mick, Eva was invited out for a drink with Josef and she'd accepted. Naturally, she both thought it was about his artwork and that Beth and Mick would be meeting up with them.


	5. Chapter 5

In light of recent events of Moonlight involving the storyline of Sarah, I have no choice but to label this fic as AU. It's only fair out of respect for the show's canon. I will continue the current plot of my story and hopefully no one gets offended.

**Chapter 5**

1871 Russia

Josef skated along the smooth ice of the pond with the other people. His vampire reflexes allowed for quick turns and spins that prevented many a collision with the humans. It was a very cold evening and almost everyone was wearing fur; the oiled pelts gleaming in the moonlight.

The women were beautiful creatures in their bustled skirts and tall fur caps, contrasting with the brutish aristocratic men. Josef greeted many of these ladies with a sexy grin full of flashing white teeth. Blushes ensued and replies were whispered. Josef spun around the entire pond in a grand sweep, keeping his eyes on the mass of people. He caught the pale flash of blond hair and white skin contrasting against black fox out of the corner of his eye. He stopped with a skid on the ice that sent a spray against the shore. The person whom caught his attention also stopped as well and smiled. Josef inhaled deeply and skated closer to the woman.

"Hello" he said and tipped his hat to the blond woman.

"Hello" her voice was gentle but husky and she continued to smile.

"I'm Josef. And you are?"

"Svetlana" She held out her hand to Josef "Escort me, Josef?" The handsome _young_ man eagerly took her hand and they started skating together "I have never seen you here before."

Josef laughed "That's because this is my first time here" He looked at the woman and she was absolutely radiant. He had traveled all over the world and he came across many women but never had one so intrigued him. He couldn't figure out why either. She wasn't the most beautiful and she obviously lacked the shy propriety that most women of this era had but he found himself ensnared by her. He held her hand and her pulse was driving him nuts. He had to have her. Svetlana tightened her hold and Josef stopped skating. He pulled the woman to him and laid a kiss on her mouth. It wasn't soft nor feral, merely claiming. He wanted her to know he desired her without scaring her away with animal abandon. She didn't pull away and answered his kiss fervently. They stopped kissing and resumed skating.

Current Times

Eva knocked on the door of the mansion with uneased intuition. Every part of her being screamed for her to run away but she couldn't. That would be rude and Eva was not a rude person. The door opened and Josef answered with a smirk.

"Eva, so glad you could come" He announced and stood aside motioning for her entry.

"Josef, thanks for the invite" she stepped into the foyer and let out a sigh "still impressive" She mumbled to herself and looked back at the man "You have a great house."

Josef closed the door and walked up beside Eva and looked around "Yeah, it's nice." He led Eva into the great room and he walked up to his bar "care for a drink?"

Eva sucked in her breath "Sure. A strong one." She wandered around the room looking at the sculptures he had strewn about.

Josef laughed at her answer and pulled out a bottle looking at it "I make a fantastic Tequila Sunrise." He suggested attempting to put the woman at ease which wasn't going to be an easy task.

"That's fine" Eva stopped in front of an obsidian sculpture of Kokopelli "This is a good piece, probably the best in the room." she called over to Josef from the other side of the room "Hand-carved obsidian of this quality is fairly rare. Especially at this size."

Josef walked over and handed Eva the drink. He wasn't looking at the sculpture. He didn't care about the damned sculpture. He was too busy appraising Eva to care. She looked lovely this evening in a champagne-colored linen shirt with pearlized buttons, khaki pants, and sandals. She wore her hair down with dangly mother-of-pearl earings. The small dose of pink in the shirt enhanced her dewey complexion. Josef stared at her neck and saw the veins pulsing beneath the skin. Unfortunately for him, Eva caught him staring.

"If you are going to stare at my neck and think about food, I'm more than happy to exit quickly."

Josef's eyes snapped up to hers "I'm sorry. Bad habit." He took a step back and went and sat down on the couch. His arm drifted across the top of the sofa nonchalantly but inviting. Eva didn't accept the bait but she did sit across from him on the other sofa and drank have her drink quickly. The tequila warming her with tingly rushed through her limbs.

Eva wasn't sure how much time passed but she finally looked at Josef who continued to watch her "Beth and Mick aren't coming are they?"

Josef shook his head, no sense in lying "No. No they aren't"

Eva set her empty glass and clearly looked annoyed "I don't appreciate being tricked. Why did you lie to me?"

Josef stood up and held out his hand towards Eva "Please. I know you don't want to but please trust me" he wiggled his hand at her, insistent. Eva just glared at him.

"Why should I trust you?"

Josef sighed "Here's a good reason. If I hurt you, Mick will kill me. Will that suffice?"

"You actually think Mick could kill you?" Eva raised an eyebrow.

Josef shrugged "OK. He might not be able to kill me but a good beating would occur and it would hurt...alot." He looked at her like a kicked puppy "I'm trying here, Eva. Please."

Eva surveyed Josef and while he looked sincere she remained aloof as she took his hand. She walked with Josef and he led her upstairs. She grew apprehensive that his intentions were innocent. Her apprehension turned to full-blown doubt when he opened the door to his bedroom.

"No way" Eva shook her hand out of his. Josef frowned and put his hands on his hips.

"I promise not to touch you at all. I swear " he put his hand over his heart. It seemed like a silly gesture on his part because his heart didn't beat therefore that kind of swearing seemed moot.

"If you do, I will personally remove at least one eyeball. Or die trying" Eva stated as she moved into the bedroom and looked around.

It seemed like a standard bedroom. There was a king size bed complete with satin sheets and four tall posters but Eva knew that it was only for show and romantic interludes. She saw three sets of French doors. One for the closet, one for the master bath, and one for the freezer room. Josef led Eva towards one of the doorways and it wasn't for the bath or closet. Eva peered in and saw the freezer but what caught her eye was the tracklit portrait of...herself. Rather it was of someone who greatly resembled herself. She walked into the room, clearly entranced by the portrait.

"That's my great great great-grandmother. She died when she was a little older than me. She died during childbirth."

Josef frowned, confused "I thought she died of consumption."

Eva shook her head "No. That was the cover story. Russian midwives were famous for their low mortality rates. They often concocted another reason for the public when women died during the birthing process. Reputation protection." She continued to stare at the portrait, appraising it for it's age and authenticity. "It's legit"

"Yes. I had this done when we were together. I wanted a little keepsake of our affair"

Eva looked at Josef "I can't believe you knew one of my ancestors. That's" She paused and Josef was sure she was going to proclaim how creepy the whole thing was "That's so cool". She smiled "What a small world. No wonder you keep staring at me. I've always been told I bear a strong resemblance to her."

"Strong? It's damned uncanny" Josef looked at her and touched her upper arm but Eva backed away.

"I said no touchy" she looked at him sternly.

"I know and I'm sorry. It's just that Svetlana was someone very important to me. Her death was cataclysmic"

Eva's expression softened "How?"

"I think my loss of Svetlana has greatly molded what I am today"

"And that's who?"

Josef smiled "a sociopathic bastard incapable of intimacy and love" He chuckled and shrugged "Once I lost her, I couldn't give my heart to anyone else. It was a reality check"

Eva crossed her arms across her chest and rubbed her arms with her hands "What check?"

Josef leaned against the doorway "That humans and vampires are not a good mix."

"So you presume that Beth and Mick are doomed?"

"I don't presume, I _know_ they are doomed."

Eva shook her head vehemently "You don't really know that. They could be different. Mick is different than you and Beth...well, she's not like alot of women."

Josef laughed "Of course she is. She follows Mick around like he's some sort of white knight. But she's just a temptress with a halo. Once she's presented with the truth about our kind, she'll be just like all the others. Run screaming and leave the poor guy with a broken heart."

"You don't even know Beth and you're insulting her. She's not like that!" Eva raised her voice in defense of her slagged cousin. She regretted it when Josef stalked over to her and his face hovered over hers.

"And are you the same? Brave in the face of feral brutality?" Before Eva's eyes, Josef's fangs elongated into sharp points and his eyes morphed into a shade of gray only attributed to wolves.

Eva was shaken "You know that Mick has already bitten Beth and she still loves him. She doesn't tell him but I know her and she's so in love, she can barely stand it when Mick looks at her. She knows him."

Josef moved closer to Eva "Are you cut from the same stone, Eva?"

"I don't love you. I don't know you. You don't know me and all you see is a ghost from the past" She was angry at Josef, that was obvious but she couldn't help notice how incredibly sexy this man was. Even in all his vampy glory he was alluring.

"Just tell me, Eva. Are you brave enough to face me long enough to know me?"

Eva just stared at the man in front of her. He looked monstrous but he also seemed vulnerable and desperate. The words got caught in her throat. Her throat that she was sure he wanted to tear out right at that moment.


End file.
